Jerry Jones Said Cowboys Players Required to Stand on Field for the National Anthem

Jones made the announcement at the Cowboys' training camp on Wednesday.

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said his players will stand on the field during the national anthem in the upcoming NFL season, according to ESPN's Todd Archer.

Jones made the announcement at the Cowboys' training camp on Wednesday. He also said that players cannot stand in the locker room before the game.

"As far as the Dallas Cowboys, you know where I stand, the team knows where I stand," Jones said.

Last season, Jones linked arms and kneeled with Cowboys players before a Sept. 25 game against the Cardinals. The Cowboys said that the team kneeled "in unity" and not in protest.

The Cowboys owner went on to add, "Our policy is you stand during the anthem, toe on the line."

However, NFL owners voted in May to remove a requirement for players to be on the field for the anthem, giving players the option to stay in the locker room.

Last week, the NFL and NFLPA issued a statement saying that they had reached a "standstill agreement" on the league's anthem policy and no new rules would be "issued or enforced for the next several weeks."

After the announcement, President Trump tweeted the following day that he can't believe that the national anthem debate in the NFL "is alive and well again." The president suggested that players should be suspended for the season without pay if they kneel during the anthem.

Jones discussed Trump's comments on the national anthem debate on Wednesday, calling them "problematic" and saying "eveybody would like it to go away."

During Wednesday's press conference, Jones also addressed Papa John's founder and former CEO John Schnatter, who resigned from the company earlier this month after admitting to using a racial slur during a May conference call.

Jones said he wouldn't distance the team from the pizza franchise, reports the Dallas Morning News.

"The Cowboys are the face of Papa Johns," Jones said. "Sure John would want a do-over."

Jones reportedly owns 120 Papa John's franchises in Texas, according to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Last season, Schnatter criticized the way the NFL handled the national anthem debate, and the league announced in February that Papa John's would no longer be their official pizza sponsor.

Jones opened training camp Wednesday in Oxnard, Calif. The Cowboys will have their first practice Thursday.